An artist's tryst with flea market

VADODARA: The Shukravari Bazaar in the old city area has several connoisseurs. But this artist not only went there till his health allowed him, but also encouraged his students to go to the flea market.
Former dean of the faculty of fine arts professor Mahendra Pandya, 86, has been in the city since 1950 when he got admission in the sculpture department of the faculty.Pandya went on to become a teacher at the faculty and head it as its dean and eventually retired from there.
But all through his journey at the faculty and even after retirement, he remained a regular visitor to the market. He has an impressive collection that includes even large items like pieces of furniture besides the usual decorative pieces and a chess set.Pandya says that his introduction to the market was accidental when he had gone there to look for a model. He vividly recalls the interestingly episode that introduced him to the market.
"We were asked to find a model who would pose for nude sketches. We asked several persons, but could not get one. I eventually sought the help of a policeman from my native Rajpipla who suggested that I should go to Fatehpura red light district and speak to some women there," he recalls.
The woman who agreed to pose sought a lot of money and a horse coach for coming for the sessions forcing the faculty to get a woman from Mumbai, but the visits to Fatehpura introduced Pandya to the flea market. "The market was not just about scrap. One got to see birds being sold there besides carved furniture and other good items from the houses of Parsi and Bohra communities. Potters and ironsmiths from around Vadodara came to the city to sell their goods," Pandya said.
Pandya rues the fact that the market has today changed a lot. "There is hardly anything interesting to buy there. Good items come up for sale only once in a while. It is not the place that it used to be," he said.